I’m out of Tokyo. While it was good fun, I started to feel a little claustrophobic. There are billions of people living in a very small area… and in complete harmony no less. All the concrete was bringing me down, so heading to Kamakura came at the perfect time. Masae helped me through the massive subway system to Shinguku station, one of the busiest places in Tokyo. This station is not only subway but the major hub for al

I have no idea where we are!

l the trains heading out of Tokyo in just about every direction. We had all my gear with us which consisted of two large carry-ons and a big ass suitcase. I’m not sure how many ups and downs we did in the station but it seemed like overkill to me to get to our track and I was so glad to have my friend at my side. I have lived in New York and am really versed in trains and subway.. but this station was complete sensory overload way too early in the morning.
My train ride wasn’t on the bullet train as I had hoped, instead I took a local train which was much like a subway car.. a full one. For the first 20 minutes I had to stand in a corner hovering over my bags as we weaved through the outskirts of the city. Then it cleared out. I had about a two hour ride south to the town of Kamakura, famous for its’ Daibutsu.. the “big budda” shrine. It’s just south of Tokyo and on a sweet little bay. It’s also known as a big

Look mom, I'm famous in Japan!

surf town get away, although it’s winter and there’s no way I would get in the water at the moment. I was coming to town a day before my class to do some sight seeing and to shop for ingredients. Sachiko, a student I know from both LA and Tokyo classes, was my host and I was honored to teach her students on Christmas day.
She picked me up at the train station, we hopped into her car and turned up the music. Sachiko is a young 25, a little hottie

Lunch with my friends in Kamakura, Japan

hipster who is just starting out in her career as a raw foodie. Her energy was a welcomed change and I fed off her playful and flirty ways. Her English is not great but we found a way to hold conversation non-stop trading names in our native languages. At our first stop – a health food store in the middle of the center of town, she had a little surprise… my very own (more…)

It’s the moment I’ve been waiting for, game time here in Tokyo. Today is my 6 hour raw food demonstration where I

The Team

get to wow eager young students with new recipes, tricks and technology. For the menu today, a lovely cherry, apple ginger spritzer using a nut milk bag instead of a juicer (juicer is optimum but not available), Sweet and Sour Spinach Cilantro Soup (recipe by Elaine Love) a Apple-Pomegranate Salad (altered for Japanese ingredients) a yummy Mushroom/Almond Stuffing with Cranberry Relish and Raw Chocolate Truffles. These are my take on Elaina Love’s creations – she’s great magical soul. That’s how any type of “cooking” is, you take the basic recipe and then add your spin or pizazz – this includes presentation, focus flavors, textures, ingredients.

It takes 4 of us to get all the ingredients and equipment to the restaurant, I don’t ever think I’ve done this much

Teaching how to make a zesty relish

prep.. even for a catering gig. Even the simplest of techniques for us in the states are brand new for Japan, so I’ve gone over my list numerous times trying to highlight all that will wow and empower. True there are many obstacles teaching in a foreign country, or should I say challenges – and I always love a challenge. It has made me realize how very lucky we are in the states to have access to some ingredients which make raw food much more gourmet. For instance, you’d think I could get Young Thai Coconuts

Answering Questions during class

here in Japan, since Thailand is merely a hop, skip and a jump, but from what I think I understand importing them is not allowed. I can’t expand more than that at the moment, but I intend to find out more. So any dessert recipe with coconut was completely out the window. I mean it makes no sense to teach a course if they don’t have access to the ingredients. There are also only a few with Vita-mixes, food processors and dehydrators – which allows you to take raw to a whole new level. Mostly it’s because – no joke – they cost more than triple the price here – another item on my list to check.